CHRISTIAN LIVING 4

2nd Semester – Midterms

LESSON 1: Law and Grace

Introduction

John 1:17 says, “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came
through Jesus Christ.” Jesus embodied the perfect balance between grace and the Law
(John 1:14).

1.1: What is Grace?

 Grace is the unmerited favor that the Lord bestows upon those who repent and
trust in Christ.
 It has been called God’s riches at Christ’s expense.
 Romans 11:6 say, “But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works;
otherwise grace would no longer be grace.”
 “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing;
it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Eph 2:8-9).
 The Law refers to the detailed standard God gave to Moses, beginning in Exodus
20 with the Ten Commandments.
 It was given to separate God’s people from the evil nations around them and to
define sin (Ezra 10:11; Rom 5:13; 7:7).
 The Law demonstrated that no human being could purify himself enough to
please God. It revealed our need for a Savior.

1.2: Is the Law void?

 We are under grace, but that doesn’t mean we are free to break the law. As
Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. (John 14:15).
 Love is equated with a desire to live an obedient life. We should want to obey
God because we love Him and we are indebted to Him for freeing us from the
eternal death penalty that we all deserved and was brought by the law.
1.3: The Purpose of Law

 The Ten Commandments show us what sin is (Rom. 7:7).

 “Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is
lawlessness” (1 John 3:4).
 We must have gratitude for Christ’s sacrifice because He “appeared in order to
take away sins, and in sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen Him
or known Him” (1 John 3:5-6).

1.4: Freed from the Law

 Paul reassures us that we are no longer under the law, “when you were slaves of
sin, you were free in regard to righteousness” (Rom 6:20).
 “Now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the
fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life” (Rom 6:22).
 Does this mean “That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the
law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if
the law had not said, “You shall not covet” (Rom 7:7).

Conclusion

God has always been full of Grace, and people have always been saved by faith
in God. The same God who gave the Law also gave Jesus. Jesus was born “under the
law” and became the final sacrifice for the fulfillment of the Law and establishment of
the New Covenant. With this, everyone who comes to God through Christ is declared
righteous.